RPetry

Kevin, Thanks for the info. BTW, can you still get abalone in Ca.? Think I will just stick with Ready Seal.

Jim, Note the city. She lives in Salem. Ring a bell? All Hallows Eve, summer solstice, cats? Beware.

Diamond Jim, Geeze, that is only 450 ft. sq. Wadda' complain in' about? At $2250? WT ain't wet. Though it does dry this year. Have RS on my own epay going on 15 months with pigment still on top. Go figure.

Try the "search" feature on this site. Reading is also helpful.

Diamond Jim, Hah! I'm friggin' crying here. A classic. Hall of fame post.

Bleach destroys exterior wood. Ask Wolman, ESI, Cabot, PWNA, or other qualified sources. Then there is the BDNA or something like that. These contractors have been using sodium hypochlorite on exterior wood for decades. Hire a contractor.

If you are really determined to do this yourself or with hubby, buy a set of knee pads, a random orbital sander, and 60 grit paper. We all do this a lot. It is not that hard. I'm 55 and sore every day. Don't complain, you have terrific wood and think it is easy? Hire a qualified contractor.

Jake Clark, via email, stated: Now this is interesting for those that are crazy stupid about exterior wood. Not that we make our products, but interesting none the less. Sounds good and the source is credible. Jake, can you tell us more? YVPW, I think you may be mistaken. Copper was and has been used for many years as a fungicide and/or mildewcide. To this day, many roofs in Maine have copper strips near the peaks to kill spores. Again, never heard of copper in or used for pigment.

I smoke 2 packs of Kool Milds a day. Could this actually **** off the Libs? Hope so. Smoked fish is the best. Use to shad fish in the spring prior to the wood business and would smoke a few for treats. Even East coast Altantic small bluefish taste good when smoked. Hmmm. North Atlantic smoked salmon is called "Locks" in this part of the US. Now about $25 a lb. for decent quality, maybe $40 for better fresh and cured.

Good post.

Kevin, You stated: And further added: WTF? Abalone is for eating, best shellfish in the world. What the frick is Alboline? And Dad and Thompson's with linseed is about WWII tech.

Jim, Maybe you need to switch to Wood Tux Wet. Hah!

Jason, You are welcome. Hope others benefit. A-C may be a real new player in stains. We need one. But seriously, anyone have a line on camels?

For those that may be interested, I'll pass along an email I received from Jake Clark of Armstrong-Clark. Note A/C is Armstrong-Clark Company. [/url] Rick, A/C formulas have three components: drying oils (37%) , nondrying oils (38%) and solvent (25%). Our drying oil is made with linseed oil as it's main component. Within the dry side of the formula we include adequate fungicide, transparent oxide pigments, some natural pigments, dryers, water repellants and several proprietary components. This dry side of the formula is designed to stay on or just inside the wood. The nondrying oils are mainly paraffinic. Since paraffinic oil is lighter than water and can lift with the rain, we fortify the oil with additives that return the paraffin and increase the weight. These nondrying oils completely separate from the drying oils and soak deep into the wood to restore lost natural oils and to dramatically increase the useful life of the wood. The solvent is added to increase the penetrating power of the oils. The solvent allows the drying and nondrying oils to penetrate into the wood fibers and return to their original viscosity for increased longevity. This approach to formulation has allowed our stains to be applied to virtually any wood substrate, from hard woods, to pressure treated soft woods, to T111. Rick, I hope this helps and if I can answer any questions, my direct lines are open to all. Sincerely Yours, Jake 1 209 588 1160 office 1 209 541 6579 cell www.armclark.com Guess that is the bottom line, from the horse's mouth. Now, who can get me 2 camels in Luxor, Egypt in January?

Jason, That is interesting. Have not heard of semi-trans stain manufacturers using copper for pigment. Most common is iron oxides or clays from what I know. There must be other pigments, care to comment on benefits or otherwise of copper?

Jason, Armstrong-Clark stains are 50% linseed oil, 50% paraffinic oil from what I have been told. Baker's is I think clay pigment but 100% paraffinic oil. But not VOC compliant in the 7 or 8 states on the East coast and Ca.. Do know that TWP at least use to make a 100% paraffinic oil stain, Amteco based, but again not available due to VOC regs. here on the East Coast. Hmmm... And who does that leave?

Thanks for the beautiful photos Robert, Matt, and MudDuck. Here is a typical NJ panorama.

Kind of like Ken's old WoodZotic mix, 50/50 western cedar/brown sugar on ipe'. Also looks good on red mahogany.

Compared to you guys, I am a Neanderthal. Used a respirator with stripper and staining when first starting out, but found it hot, uncomfortable, and the safety glasses would continue to fog up. Have not used one since. With 35 yrs. of 2 packs of smokes a day, a little chems and stain mist is nothing but icing on the cake. Help is required to wear safety glasses, a dust mask when sanding, and encouraged but not required to wear a respirator. They have nice clean pink lungs with working cilia that need protecting. Long live the help!

Lance, Much easier to use. Instead of lugging a jug around in one hand and spraying with the other, the weight is on your back. You also do not have to stop spaying to pump up. The backpack units have a lever pump arm for your left hand that you continuously use so spraying never stops. Way faster.

Lateralus, I disagree with the other comments. We have a backpack sprayer, have used it for 6 or 7 years. The make is RL Flowmaster, Pro model, and it has served us well. While Shurflo or Delavan 12 volt pumps are wonderful and we use them almost daily, a manual backpack sprayer has its place. First and foremost, a backpack serves as a backup. 12 volt pumps, especially Delavans, have a tendency to die suddenly. Second, if you use sodium percarbonate based wood cleaners, electric pumps tend to choke due to the off gassing. Until the mix cools, a backpack unit can be used. Third, for small jobs, backpacks are ideal. No need to drag out the electric pump units. Backpacks are easier and quicker to clean out. I do agree with others that backpacks should not be used for NaOH strippers. They do have a tendency to leak at times.

Matt, You are one very brave woodie. Multiple coatings of acrylic can be a true nightmare to remove. Did you test with any strippers? A couple of specialty strippers may help on the job. Back to Natures BFSII works very well on multi-layered acrylic stains. We have used it with good results in the past. Others have reported that a product called RemoveAll 310 is also effective. Be sure to load up on sandpaper. We order very durable, high quality sandpapers from : Klingspor's Woodworking Shop,klingspor's,Klingspor's,woodworking,supplies,tools,proxxon,disc,sanding sleeves,sandpaper,belts Best of luck. Hope the tuition is not too high!

Jeff & Rod, I think the wood may be redwood.

Adrian posted: Many woodies are pagans. Someone put a fish symbol on their website or business card jpeg and I personally had no idea what it meant. Does not really matter, I live in New Jersey and already experience hell on earth. Eternity is nothing.

Sorry Adrian, I really thought the first picture was before stripping. If you look closely, the middle and left portions of the wood are green, thought it was mold or mildew. Photos can be tricky.